pc wont turn on

[gobofraggle]

hi all,my pc sometimes wont turn on, i have to turn the power to it off then back on again to get it to start ,any ideas as to what the cause of this might be please.

[beso]

This symptom is consistent with computers I have worked on that have bad motherboard capacitors. Generally within a few weeks the computer stops turning on at all.

For information see www.badcaps.net/

[ACtheTROLL]

don't fix it until you have to - beso's is a good guess - but it is still a guess... it could be something really stupid like a loose lead ... let it fail ... makes a fix more certain

[beso]

I disagree with ACtheTROLL. Yes it is a guess but the failing caps can cause more damage either by leaking corrosive electrolye or causing further component failure. They can also cause memory errors that could corrupt data.

You can often see the bad caps. The ends usually swell up before they leak. Just open the case and take a look. In my experience they are the largest MB caps.

I have also seen power supply caps fail in this way with similar symptoms.

[ACtheTROLL]

If it was someone who was an expert user I'd be with you beso ... but it's not (no disrespect to gobo).

yep ... constant failures could lead to corruption ... but gobo says won't switch on ... not bsods or crashes.
(gobo .. once on ... runs OK - ok?)
If it won't post intermittently ...there are other reasons

one of my other machines is slowly self destructing ... only one dimm slot works ... the caps look like bill and ben are having a party ... but not one has split in over 12 months.

gobo
you need to open the box and follow the instructions on the site beso gave
http://www.badcaps.net/pages.php?vid=5

If they have popped ... it's a new mobo ... which could cost anywhere from �30-�130 + labour (depends on your system - and what you want).

+ depending on how old your machine is you could also need to buy new dimms - and if really unlucky a new processor .... which is why I say let it fail - or at least get worse ... just make sure anything important is backed up - and think where you go .. fix or get a new machine.

just a thought ... you don't mean won't come out of standby do you??

[gobofraggle]

yes AC once started the pc works fine.and no i don`t use standby at all.i also had to have the processor and motherboard changed about 18mths ago as the pc kept crashing.i did have an amd i now have a pentium 4.dont know if any of this helps?.

[ACtheTROLL]

I'm stuck - not being able to see in the box doesn't help....

And anything I say will almost certainly bite me in the light of day ....
the on/off switch isn't actually a hard switch ... more a keyboard key ... it just signals the mobo to power down (not actually switch off).

if it stays on once it is on ... it could be the button .... the cable ... the connector .... or what it's connected to (mobo)

if you can - open the box ... make sure nothing is bursting to get out ...(just in case)

you could even waggle a few connectors
but I'll stick with the let it fail method ..

[gobofraggle]

ok AC will have a check,but think i`ll take your advice and wait and see,it`s a stumper as it don`t happen all the time,about every 3-4 days.

[Ice.Maiden]

I've had loads of trouble with mine over the past few days - not turning on properly, not being able to get Firefox, slow moving, etc., etc. I defreagged for the first time tonight - and......fingers crossed! It seems to be much better.